Fall weather swept in this past weekend & I didn't hesitate a second on capitalizing on it with some fall like cooking! My family was coming over for dinner so I decided to braise some short ribs. I couldn't decided on any 1 recipe to follow, so I combined several different methods & let me tell you- this is a fabulous way to make short ribs! The sauce is amazing & the meat is so tender it literally falls off the bones. It is so easy, in fact, the most difficult part of the recipe is getting the meat out of the pot still attached to the bone! It takes a bit of time to make but the oven does all the work. The only secret to this recipe is in the last steps. I take the ribs out of the braising liquid & bake them for a few minutes before serving. It crisps up the exterior of the meat creating a lovely texture. I found this wonder tip on Smitten Kitchen.com. There are some excellent photos you should check out here too! I didn't take pictures while I was cooking, I didn't intend to be blogging about it when I made it. But it really is such a good recipe, I had to share it. Besides it really is so simple, you won't even miss the step by step photos. I served them on top of Creamy Mashed Potatoes but butter egg noodles or rice would be good too.
Ingredients:
6-7 lbs Bone In Short Ribs, excess fat trimmed off
2 Medium Sized Onions, quartered
20 (or so) Baby Carrots, whole
6 cloves of Garlic, whole, peeled
2 cups Red Wine
1, 32 oz container Beef Broth
1, 6 oz can Tomato Paste
2 tbsp- 1/4 cup Balsamic Vinegar
8-10 sprigs of fresh Thyme
1 tbsp Olive Oil
Salt & pepper to taste
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the short ribs in a single layer on a sheet pan. Season well with salt & pepper. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a large dutch oven, drizzle a tablespoon or so of olive oil & turn the heat to medium. Add the quartered onions & carrots & cook until they are tender. Add in the garlic cloves & continue to cook for 1 minute. Add in the wine & cook until it has reduced by half, about 10 minutes. Add in the tomato paste, beef broth, balsamic vinegar & half of the fresh thyme. Stir to incorporate.
After 15 minutes, remove the short ribs from the oven & reduce the temperature to 325 degrees. Add the short ribs to the dutch oven, with the bones standing upright. Place the other half of the thyme in the pot, on top of the meat. Cover & place in a 325 degree oven for 3 hours. You'll know the meat is done when it is easily pierced with a knife or fork.
Take the pot out of the oven & allow to sit for 15 minutes or so. (If you want to make this a day ahead. This is where you would stop. Simply allow it to come to room temperature & refrigerate. When you are ready to finish, simply pull it out of the refrigerator, skim the fat solid that has congealed on the top & bring to a simmer on the stove top. Then continue below.)
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Carefully, remove the ribs from the dutch oven & place on a sheet pan. (While you are pulling out the ribs, also pull out all the stems from the fresh thyme!!) Bake the ribs until browned, about 10-15 minutes. Check it out- my brother did managed to snap a picture of the ribs, just out of the oven!
While the ribs are browning, ladle as much fat off the top of the braising liquid as you can. (If you made this a day ahead, you will have already done this.) Continue to simmer the sauce to thicken. If you sauce is too thick, you can thin it with more broth or water. Taste & adjust your seasonings.
To serve, I like to place a big scoop of creamy mashed potatoes in the center of a shallow bowl or plate. Put 2 short ribs on the side of the mashed potatoes & spoon some of the thickened braising liquid over top of it all. YUM! This serves 6-8.
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